Czech Republic: Prague negotiating new direct flights to the United States

Prague, Czech Republic – Vaclav Havel International Airport in Prague is partnering with Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson, the busiest and most visited airport in the world, to increase cooperation in several areas and discuss the launch of a new direct flights between the United States and the Czech Republic.

Prague airport authorities released a statement on Monday making the new partnership public, saying the two sides were currently negotiating to open direct flights between Prague and Atlanta. “We see great potential for further development of air routes”, Prague Airport director Václav Řehoř said.

Although operated in the past by Delta Air Lines, the direct flights between Atlanta and the Czech capital city was eventually scrapped, meaning that there currently are three direct air routes linking Prague to the United States (New York, Philadelphia and Newark).

The partnership between both airports doesn’t only include the launch of a new air connection, but also pertains to the exchange of know-how, expertise and experience in the digitization of their activities. According to local media, Prague’s Vaclav Havel Airport has already struck similar partnerships with other airports around the world, including Seoul’s Incheon International Airport, in South Korea.

Prague’s airport, named third best in Central and Eastern Europe with connections to over 160 destinations, broke attendance records last year, with nearly 17 million passengers, a 10% increase compared to 2017. Analysts expect passenger traffic to keep on growing this year by roughly 5%. In comparison, Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson is the biggest and busiest airport in the world, welcoming 107 million passengers in 2018.